Author Archives: Eliyahu B.

Haman and Mordechai: A Third Story

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Cross-posted from my Facebook note.

In my Peace and Conflict class today we wrote what is called a “Third Story” regarding Amalek (the nation whose descendants have plagued Israel with wars and attempted exterminations). Here is what a Third Story is, and then I will share my “Third Story” of the conflict between Haman and Mordechai, which is at the very center of the story of Purim:

“In addition to your story and the other person’s story, every difficult conversation includes an invisible Third Story. The Third Story is the one a keen observer would tell, someone with no stake in your particular problem… One of the most helpful tools a mediator has is the ability to identify the invisible Third Story. This means describing the problem between the parties in a way that rings true for both sides simultaneously. It’s easy to describe the problem so that only one of the disputants would agree with it–in fact, that’s what each of us does when we begin inside our own story. The trick is being able to get two people with different stories to sign on to the same description of what is going on.”

And now, here is my Third Story between Haman and Mordechai:

Haman: Always cheated out of the respect I deserve! My family is always cheated out of getting our just due, and it always comes from one side–Jacob’s descendants! It’s not fair. Why do they get the Lord’s favor when simple folk like me don’t even ask for much! Finally, FINALLY, I am noticed, recognized and promoted, and what does Mordechai do? He will not acknowledge me! This is not right, in my eyes. I deserve this position, and I deserve respect!

Mordechai: Who does Haman think he is that I will bow down before him? In the tradition of my forefathers of which I am well aware I know it is a grave sin to bow down before this proud man who would not have me bow just to him, but to that wretched idol upon his chest as well! I respect tradition, and most of all I respect myself, which is why I will not bow in worship to anyone other than Adonai. What I have been asked to do is not right in my eyes and the eyes of my G-d, so I will not stand for it, no matter what the cost may be.

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Haman to Mordechai: Mordechai! Why will you not bow before me, like your King has ordered?

Mordechai to Haman: It is not you I will not bow to, but what you represent! You see, I am a learned man steeped in the tradition of my fathers, and part of that tradition is not bowing before other gods. I see it in your eyes and on your chest–You seek to make yourself a god among us, and I cannot oblige. My tradition forbids it.

After this, proud Haman becomes angry and resentful, and he storms off to plot Mordechai’s destruction.

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Social Justice – Universalism and Humanism

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Here is a dvar tzedek I wrote and gave to my Social Justice class today on our last day of class:

 

Shalom classmates. I am here before you today to share with you my views on humanism and universalism, two topics which have been prominent in my way of thinking for many years, at least since I began really thinking for myself in college. I feel a bit like I imagine Levi Lauer did when he spoke to us not too long ago, because this is a topic that is near and dear to my heart and I acknowledge that I will be held accountable for everything I say here today. With that said, I will move on.

What does it mean to love another human being? What does it mean to love yourself? And most of all, what does it mean when Rabbi Akiva says it is a major principle of the Torah that “you shall love your neighbor as yourself”? To answer these questions, let’s first look at what humanism and universalism is.

Dictionary.com defines humanism as any system or mode of thought or action in which human interests, values and dignity predominate. It defines universalism as the doctrine that emphasizes the universal fatherhood of G-d and the final salvation of all souls. It is also important to note that in philosophy, humanism is an ethical theory that often rejects the importance of a belief in G-d and puts the emphasis on human fulfillment in the natural world through scientific inquiry and reason.

So now that we know what they mean, we are left to ask ourselves: How do these two concepts fit into loving one another as we do ourselves? The answer to this question can be found in the book Pahad Yitzhak, written by Rav Yitzhak Hutner. In his section on the festival of Shavuot he writes that “the basic fact upon which everything is established is that ‘the person was created as an individual’.” He goes on to write that “from this foundational fact emerges two alternative voices,” the first of which declares that “all of us are the children of a single father, [and] our family tree can be traced to a single human being.”

What Hutner means by way of this first voice is that “each of us are nothing more than pieces of a single wholeness… [which] is a faithful source of the unity of humankind.” By his very own words, humanity is unified by way of a single Father, who in my estimation has imbued characteristics upon us that we all share. This is universalism at its core.

Hutner then goes on to describe the second voice that emerges from this foundational fact of who we are, which declares: “The nature of the father is in the child.” He further explains that “since the head of our family tree is a single human being, as a matter of course each one of us is imprinted with an aspect of the uniqueness of our origin.” What I take this to mean is that our humanity is emphasized through the very natural fact that we come from a specific someone who imbues us with their own attributes, in addition to our ancestral Father. This emphasizes our individuality because each of us have our own parents who we originate from, gain our values from, and even pick up characteristics, qualities and ethics from. This in a nutshell is the essence of humanism.

So now our question is: How do we reconcile and combine these two seemingly disparate worldviews, and again, where does loving one another as we do ourselves come into play? Well, I would argue that we love one another dafka (precisely) for and because of our differences. It is our differences that make us the unique individuals that we are, so in acceptance of this fact what’s not to love? We are all unique, that is G-d’s blessing to us! I firmly believe it is our imperative to celebrate these differences and, by way of visual metaphor, see them all as freckles on the face of G-d. Because that’s what they are! Not only do they indicate our individuality, but they express our common humanity as one People with a single Father.

This is what Rabbi Akiva means when he says you shall love your neighbor as yourself. You’re all unique, but that’s great! That’s exactly why you can love your neighbor as yourself! This brings me to one last point, which I believe is the most important point of all and one that I constantly reflect on. Loving your neighbor as yourself implies that you love yourself first, and sometimes this can be the hardest task to accomplish. It requires seeing yourself not only as a unique individual with your own history, traits and flaws… but also as a child of G-d, of a single Father. He loves you no matter how many times you screw up, all he is waiting for is your teshuva. This fact is what gives me hope. Hope for myself, and hope for humanity. May we all have the strength to return to our Father in love, and by way of this return love others as well. Thank you.

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Social Justice – Emotional Equality

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(Thanks to Falynn for asking me to post this)

I gave this dvar tzedek  in my Social Justice class a few months ago. I hope it is meaningful for everyone:

A fundamental tenet of social justice, to me, is equality. I believe that equality is a natural human right which should always be found among all people. Within the public domain equality is also very important, as the public domain is an equal space for all to share and as such it should be maintained for the benefit of the public good. This is what is meant and said in the passage from the Tosefta Bava Kama, where Rabbi Akiva says “Just as [a man] does not have permission to ruin, so too does he not have permission to clear stones [by way of the public domain].”

If you’ll come with me for a moment, I am going to take this assertion and flip it on its head. On the surface, from the pshat, it is speaking of the natural environment, the earth… but I am going to interpret it as a metaphor, from the drash, which in my opinion can be taken in terms of the emotional environment that we create among one another.

We all hurt sometimes, we all feel sorrow, we all know pain… but what were to happen if we shared these feelings in the public domain? The Tosefta Bava Kama goes on to state that when “a stone clearer… takes from his own field and places in the public domain, and another person comes along and is damaged by it, the stone clearer is culpable for the damage.” In this instance, and following the metaphor I am trying to make, the stone clearer can be seen as a person who is trying to clear their painful emotions, or “stones”, by way of the public domain. What happens next? Is the stone clearer responsible for the emotions they stir up in others who stumble upon it? According to this passage, the answer is yes. Let’s explore this further.

In today’s modern, technologically-based world, the best example of the public domain is Facebook. It is a place where the public can see what is going on in your mind, your heart and your life.  But what is appropriate to share without hurting others in the process? The Tosefta has an answer: Don’t clear stones. Don’t air your emotional garbage for the world to see, because who knows who will stumble upon it and feel bad for you or feel bad about themselves because it reminds them of past wounds? This causes a cycle of *more* pain in the world, and it is only destroying the public good.

The Tosefta goes on further to say that one who clears stones by way of the public domain “is like someone who is removing stones from something that does not belong to him and placing them in within what is his.” This is so true! The emotional component of the public domain belongs to and is shared by *everyone*, even if they don’t consciously realize it. We all share the same basic emotions, and we all can be affected by someone who is sharing strong emotions in public… *especially* in public, because we intuitively understand it is not just us who are affected by them. It can cause a parent or loved one great worry, and it can ultimately push people away.

To further expand on Rabbi Akiva’s mention of “removing stones from something that does not belong to [us],” my interpretation is that we are pulling these emotions from our very soul, that which does not belong to us but belongs to G-d, and we are sharing them with the public in an unhealthy way.

We live in a complex world, filled with a variety of people and a variety of feelings at any one time. Add to that the ways we have created for ourselves to communicate publicly: radio, TV, Facebook, the list goes on. We need a guide to navigate these emotional waters as human beings, so I would like to quote a central question posed in Genesis, when G-d is speaking to Cain after he kills Abel. G-d asks where Abel is, and Cain responds: “Am I my brother’s keeper?”

We are all our brother’s keepers. We all share responsibility for one another’s emotions, and we can either lift each other up or tear each other down by what we say, especially in a community and especially in the public domain. That is why we need to watch not just what we say to each other, but *how* we say it, because the world belongs to all of us, and it is up to us to make it a joyful place to live in.

Thank you for listening, and may we all find the strength to love one another as brothers and sisters of one world, thus ensuring the public good for all time.

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A Week of Fullness, Friends and Fun

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Cross-posted from the Peaceable Pilgrim:

Shalom friends! It is the beginning of a new week here in Jerusalem, and the past one was filled with SO MUCH AWESOMENESS that I just have to share with you.

Classes started up again full-swing on Sunday, and even though I was somewhat dreading getting back to a normal routine after vacation, it was actually quite nice to be learning again. It’s what I came here to Jerusalem to do, after all! On Sunday I had Chumash class, where we learn Hebrew and study the book of Exodus, in the morning. Then I had Prophets with Master Tanakh Teacher Michael Hattin from 12-1 where we study the books of Joshua, Judges, Samuel and Kings.

After Prophets I ran back to my apartment to get my things together for a trip we were taking that day in my Social Justice class to the area around the Shuk, an open-air market in Jerusalem. It was a tour to learn more about poverty in Jerusalem and our guide first took us to a restaurant called Carmei Ha’ir whose goal is to feed the hungry and leave them with dignity, so those who can pay do, but those who can’t they don’t require payment from. After listening to and asking questions of the restaurant’s owner, we continued on to different neighborhoods around the Shuk, seeing the extent of the Russian and Ethiopian communities and what life is like for people of many different backgrounds.

Some poverty statistics:

  • In 2009, 36% of households in Jerusalem were below the poverty line: 23% of Jewish households were below the poverty line as compared with 68% of non-Jewish families.
  • In 2009, 60.5% of children were below the poverty line: 44.5% of Jewish children and 82% of non-Jewish children. [As opposed to 59% overall, 48% Jewish and 74% non-Jewish in 2007]

The next day, Monday, I had my Foundations of Judaism class which I really like. After that was Prophets again, and then during lunch was a special mock debate between David Bernstein, the Dean of Pardes, and David Levin Kruss, my Foundations of Judaism teacher. It was a debate over the deal to free Gilad Shalit, which was a major occurrence in Israel over the break, and each teacher took either a for or against stance that neither knew ahead of time. The debate was interesting for me to see, not only to hear both sides of the coin, but also because there was time for questions after the speakers finished which were amazing. Many people shared their own stories and feelings about what Gilad being free meant to them, and hearing their own personal histories with the issue meant a lot to me and made it more real.

The debate also allowed me to see it from a more human perspective and not just a moral one, which was where I originally fell on the line since we learned in Social Justice class that the Talmud says not to pay exorbitant amounts for hostages for the sake of the general good. 1,000+ people to me was an exorbitant amount, and not having much emotional stake in the issue I didn’t see the good in it, but after seeing some videos of the welcome the Palestinian prisoners received when they came home (which were very warm and human, and even heartbreaking as some prisoners had developed something akin to PTSD in prison and were different people when arriving home, not acknowledging children they had never met or just not knowing how to deal with the unfamiliarity of it all) and hearing that all the prisoners signed a statement that they would not resume hostile activities I felt a lot more understanding of the deal to bring Gilad back alive.

Now on Tuesdays, what is noteworthy is that instead of our regular 12-1 class we have something called “Critical Issues,” where Pardes teachers or outside experts in their field come to the Beit Midrash and talk about a topic that is relevant to Israel society today. On this past Tuesday, we had the honor of listening in on a discussion between Pardes teachers Michael Hattin and Daniel Roth, who talked about what Kedushat Eretz Yisrael (the sanctity/holiness of the Land of Israel) meant to them. This discussion was absolutely AMAZING! Everyone was raptly glued to their chairs as these two questioned each other and ultimately got down to what it meant to say that the Jews belong in Israel, and not just some territory in Canada, or anywhere else. Why Israel? What does it mean for the Jews, and everyone else? Can there be peaceful borders? Can non-Jews live in the land too? (The answer is yes.) I felt honored and privileged to witness such a frank and open discussion, and I am so thankful to Pardes and these two teachers for facilitating such a conversation.

On Wednesday I made my name change official at Community Lunch, and it was a truly moving experience for me. First, we had a Social Justice speaker named Joseph Gitler come and speak to us about his organization called Leket, which provides work for Arab-Israeli citizens and food for the needy in Israel. Then, we had faculty and student announcements. When it was my turn to speak, I stood up and announced to all my friends and teachers that I would like to be known from now on by my Hebrew name, and the Hebrew name of my grandfather, Eliyahu. When I was finished everyone applauded, and it really touched me to receive such a warm recognition of who I am. It is something I will never forget as long as I live, and I am so thankful to be part of such an open and amazing community of people.

On Thursdays, we have a half day at Pardes to allow time for our Social Action projects, so this Thursday I got home from school early, took care of some errands and tasks I needed to do, and then went to Kol Haneshama at 4:30 to prepare for teaching English to disadvantaged kids in the community at 5. I have to say, these kids are absolutely amazing and most have the greatest attitudes ever. It makes teaching them fun, and getting to know them even more fun. I was the “point person” that day and our normal coordinator is out of town for the next 2 weeks, so a lot of the responsibility of organization fell to me. I was happy to contribute, and all in all we had a successful day! At the end one of the girls needed a walk to the bus stop, so I volunteered and on our walk she taught me some Hebrew! I knew a little, so we could converse very simply, and she taught me how to say “left” and “right” and “forward” and “backward”. It was really nice and I felt we connected in a meaningful way. I’m so happy to be able to teach kids again, as it’s something that I was very passionate about leading up to my time in Korea and that didn’t quite materialize fully during my time there, but there were definitely high moments in Korea, and it seems like there are much more high moments in this new environment than low ones.

On Friday, I slept in until my landlord (who I was expecting) rang our buzzer around 10:30 so he could fix a few things around the apartment. After he left I did some chores, went online, read a little, and then got ready for Shabbat. I showered, got dressed, and made my way to Kol Haneshama where Nava Tehila, the renewal minyan I mentioned in my previous entry, was meeting for their monthly Kabbalat Shabbat service. I have never been to one of these services by them before, and it was one of the most beautiful experiences I’ve had during my time in Jerusalem so far.

Why was it so beautiful? To be surrounded, with chairs all in a circle, by people who I have been sharing experiences with since my time in Jerusalem and sing songs of peace and praise with them… I don’t think words can do justice to how much it meant to me. I saw people from my ulpan, some who I would never expect to see and some I would (including the Reform family I mentioned in a previous entry that I shared Shabbat with during my first month here). I saw friends from Pardes, some of whom I sat with. I saw Sam (a Pardes friend) beating on the drums in tune to the beat and felt like I was a part of him as I drummed my hands on my legs. But most of the time, to really experience the fullness of the experience, I closed my eyes and just tried to connect to myself knowing I was surrounded by all these people who are meaning more and more to me every day.

At first I was nervous, trying to be precise and read the Hebrew of the songs, but when I let go and just followed the words sung by everyone else intuitively I was really able to connect to the magic of Shabbat in moments, and I gained a sense of peace. It is an experience I am excited to share again, and I can’t wait for more meaningful moments with all of these people over the next 8 months. I’m sure they will keep on coming.

After services I walked with some Pardesnicks to our friend Naomi’s house (who was actually in Seoul the same time I was, and we met at a Chanukah party at her apartment) and we had a great Shabbat meal there. There was excellent conversation, of which turned to Harry Potter (what is one aspect of the Harry Potter world that you would like to be real? I chose flying) and “shtetl milfs”, and there were lots of laughs. I had a great time.

On Saturday, I joyfully slept in until 11:30 (slept for more than 10 hours, yea!) and then got ready to go to my Social Justice teacher’s house for Shabbat lunch where her and her family were hosting our class. It was another awesome meal, just adding to the wonderful Shabbat atmosphere, as there was GREAT food and even greater company. We even sung some great songs, one led by Sam, which I will include here because it was so awesome:

“Deep inside my heart I’ve got this everlasting light,
It’s shining like the sun, it radiates on everyone
And the more that I give
The more I’ve got to give
’cause it’s the way that I give
That’s what I’m livin’ for”

After lunch it was already 4:00 and I was planning on going home to rest, but the friends I was walking back with and I ran into our new classmate Amber who was going to the Tayelet and I decided to join. I am so glad that I did, because not only did I begin Shabbat surrounded by friends and meaning, but I got to end it the same way. The Tayelet was absolutely BREATH-TAKING with its panoramic view of Jerusalem and the Old City. I’ve never seen such a view and never knew it was so close to where I lived! More and more people kept coming, and soon there was a group of more than 20 of us Pardes students where we shared food, prayers, and even sat in a circle and shared something that was meaningful to us about the week’s Torah portion or something we had learned or felt recently. It was beautiful. There was even the most awesome cat who decided to join us on a nearby ledge, who’s eyes were fixed on us as if he were listening intently and appreciating all of us at that moment. I went over to him afterwards and petted him, of which he was happy to receive as he nuzzled my hand. I was surprised to find such an affectionate cat out in the middle of a park! It just added to the experience of an amazing Shabbat not to be forgotten, and it was the perfect end and perfect beginning of both an old week and a new one.

Shavua tov (Have a good week) all!

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A New Year of Adventures, and a Vacation Filled with Memories

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Originally posted at the Peaceable Pilgrim last week:

Shalom! It is Eliyahu, the Peaceable Pilgrim, here to regale you with more tales from the wonderful city of Jerusalem! Many changes are afoot, as it is a new year (according to the Jewish calendar) and as such is a time for new beginnings. The most notable one: A name change. Yes, that’s right, from this point forward I will now be known among my friends by my Hebrew name, Eliyahu. I am planning to make an announcement during the next Community Lunch at my school, and I’ve already announced the pending change to friends I’ve already come into contact with and on Facebook. I’m excited, as it is something I have wanted to do for years now, and I am happy to be finally making this change in a real, concrete way.

As for other changes, my whole LIFE is one big change! Everything I do here feels diametrically different than what I do back home, and CERTAINLY different from what I was able to do in Korea! But change is awesome, as the world is beginning to see with the death of Gaddafhi and the Occupy protests all over America. Change is happening, and it is exciting! But getting back to my life… there is sooo much to share! I know my last post was a month and a half ago, but I will do my best to fill you in on all that is going on in the life of the Peaceable Pilgrim in Jerusalem!

Firstly, and most significantly, it’s been almost a MONTH-LONG holiday season here in Israel! First we started with Rosh Hashana on September 29, which began the 10 days leading up to Yom Kippur, the day of repentance and also indicated the start of the Jewish New Year. They were busy times, with new students coming into classes, teachers finishing up their lesson plans before Sukkot break and just a general buzz of excitement and plans among all Pardes students. I went to many services with my Pardes friends at Kol Haneshama, the reform synagogue I mentioned in my last entry, and I even found a new minyan called Nava Tehila that is full of vibrancy, life and song which I have enjoyed being a part of. They don’t meet regularly, but when they do, lots of Pardes students go there to celebrate and pray.

Yom Kippur is a VERY interesting day in Jerusalem. It is the Shabbat of Shabbats, and this year, coincidentally, it actually FELL on Shabbat, so it was doubley powerful! The amazing thing about Yom Kippur is that because the whole country follows it, and it is one of the holiest days of the Jewish year, there are almost NO cars on the road and everyone just walks all over the streets. Jerusalem becomes one big park. On Friday night aftter Kol Nidrei services at Nava Tehila I and a few friends found ourselves on Emek Refaim, one of the main streets nearby with shops, restaurants, cafes and more where we just hung out literally on the street for more than an hour. During that hour many people we knew came by and joined our group, some staying for a few minutes and some for longer. It was like one big block party. Quite the amazing sight.

The next day, the actual day of Yom Kippur, everyone was feeling the hunger pangs but we made it through services at Kol Haneshama in the morning, and then I walked with some of my friends around the city to a park, then back home for a quick second, and then we were off to walk to the Old City so we could soak up the atmosphere. We ran into many different friends throughout our travels, and again it was quite amazing to see the city so quiet and peaceful. We went to the Western Wall, prayed, and then we finally separated and I walked back to Kol Haneshama for their reading of the Book of Jonah and their concluding service leading into the end of Yom Kippur. Then, it was off to a breakfast “Break the Fast” party at one of my fellow Pardes students’ apartments where many of my friends were. I had a great time, and it was an experience not to be forgotten.

After Yom Kippur we had 2 more days of school, and then we got an almost 2-week vacation! Starting Monday night we were off, and boy what a great vacation it was! Some highlights include:

  • Seeing three movies at the movie theater nearby
  • Eating many great meals with awesome people
  • Going to three concerts in three different places and 2 different cities
  • Getting out of Jerusalem and heading to the BEACH for a day
  • RELAXING and taking it easy
  • Meeting up with friends and just hanging out

I honestly wish chag (holiday) would never end, as it really allowed me to exercise my free-spirit tendencies, do some independent thinking and just get out of my routine, which I love. But tomorrow school starts again, and it’s back to the hectic schedule of craziness! It’s busy, but I guess in a way it’s good too. It’s what I signed up for, after all.

A few more things to mention: The trip I took to the beach was to the city of Haifa, which is up far to the north in Israel. I took a bus Monday afternoon, got to my hotel around 4:00, settled in, then walked downhill to this HUGE mall called Grand Canyon where I did hours of exploring, shopping and just enjoying myself. I bought something like 6 books at the book store, saw a clown performing for a bunch of children on the bottom floor and ate at a great restaurant where I had the most delicious chicken salad ever. After a few hours at the mall, I took a bus to the City Center where there were a LOT of people and a LOT going on. I followed the mass of people to one section where I had to go through security to get into this Arts & Crafts fair that was AWESOME. They had incredible food (I got sugar-coated hazelnuts, chocolate crepes and wine) and also a really cool art exhibit and a cinema that was playing a black and white movie on the wall of one of the buildings nearby. It was a very classy atmosphere with a lot of variety and interesting sights and smells. I greatly enjoyed myself for the hour or so that I was there.

After deciding to leave, I started walking further along the main road, passing street vendors and street musicians looking for change, and my ears came across the sound of music playing in the distance. I followed them, went through security again, and ended up at an Israeli rock concert that was freaking AWESOME! The band, who I asked someone nearby, was called Tome (pronounced toh-may) and they had a really great sound. High energy, great lyrics (of which I can only assume because they were in Hebrew, haha, but at least they were clear) and an all-around great performance. I caught maybe the last 45 minutes of their act and it was wonderful. I love live music so I was really happy to have stumbled upon it and have something to dance to surrounded by lots of cool people.

After the concert I took a taxi back to my hotel, got back around 11, read one of my books and finally fell asleep. The next morning I woke up for breakfast, then checked out and took all my stuff with me to the BEACH! I took a bus there, and it dropped me off at the Central Bus Station where I would be getting a ride back to Jerusalem later. The bus station was literally a 3-minute walk from the beach, so I headed out and found a section of the main beach that had a tall covered overhang and lots of chairs to sit on. I got 2 chairs, one for my stuff and one for me, and just lazed and relaxed. I went into the water, which felt amazing, and just let the waves wash over me as I enjoyed the sun and surf. This was what I had been needing for months, and I was so happy to finally be back home where I belonged. I read more of my book after getting out of the ocean, ate lunch at one of the nice beach cafes where I had a hamburger and a HUGE sangria that I couldn’t finish, then finally went back into the ocean, dried off, and got ready for the bus ride back to Jerusalem. It was an AWESOME mini vacation and I am so glad that I took it.

I’m sure there are many more stories to tell, of which I either can’t remember or don’t have the energy to share right now, but there’s always another day, and certainly more adventures to be had! Be content now, my friends, and look forward to next time. Until then, this is the Peaceable Pilgrim signing off. L’shana tova (which means To a good year)!

All the best,

Eliyahu

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